Hao Ren did not know where Tang Zen intended to take him, but he followed behind her. She came out in the living room, waved her hand, and opened a void tunnel. She held Hao Ren's hand and tugged him gently to follow behind her.
The next moment, they appeared in an arid place. The cold wind made Hao Ren shiver, and he looked at Tang Zen who said, "Use your spiritual energy or the flames to keep warm. This is the training ground and not home. On the other side, all that you will have is yourself. Even Mei might not be of help to you when you face something unexpectedly strong."
Hao Ren channeled the energy of his flame as the two people walked slowly to climb the summit. The young man asked, "What are we training here?"
Tang Zen replied, "Resolve."
Hao Ren was confused and the next moment Tang Zen said, "Gradually lower the usage of spiritual energy and the flames. The cold you see here is nothing compared to the southern Yin River. It is said that one drop of water from that lake can freeze the souls of the people."
The young man was surprised, Tang Zen said, "Do not think that I am exaggerating anything, I won't gain anything by doing that. I only wish for you to be safe."
Hao Ren nodded and asked, "Even if you want me to lower the usage of the protective energies, that means my body will develop stronger. However, what does it have to do with my resolve to get stronger?"
Tang Zen stopped in her tracks and raised her hand to point at the summit laying in the distance as she said, "When you reach the peak, you will find out about it."
Hao Ren did not understand but he was not here to doubt the old lady. She was sincere to the process of cultivation and even now, her looks have started to revert back to the times when she was slightly younger.
Hao Ren walked on the black ground as the wind currents hit against him. The young man had been putting his hands closer to his body but now, he realized that it was not possible to continue trekking after the winds hit him so hard that he almost lost his balance. Hao Ren gradually had been lowering the circulation of the flame inside his body.
With every step he took a deeper breath, the cold was freezing, he did not know where he was, but the cold was so much that he really wished to cover himself up. Hao Ren did not expect that even after being a Foundation Establishment realm cultivator, he would be so troubled.
He wanted to cover himself up with spiritual energy when a calm voice sounded beside him, "You are not the strongest person in the world, even the ones who transcend the known peak to the cultivators can fall to their demise if they take a wrong step.
You said that you wish to walk the carefree path, but do you know, those who do not care about the ranks and the titles have to face the most competition?
They are chased by the ones who care about all those things. They become a mean to set precent, to affirm the titles. Only the one whose strength is recognized by the world can move unfretted, and stay away from all the ruckus, completely carefree. Do you have the guys to go that far? The road of cultivation is lonely and hard. Are you sure you want to tread on it?"
The voice belonged to Tang Zen, however, she did not speak in a harsh manner. She was spurring up Hao Ren. The young man walked ahead, without saying any thing. Tang Zen did not follow him anymore. She did not say anything either. This was to remind Hao Ren that the path of cultivation was not easy.
The winds became sharp, they were now prickling his skin as if small blade were embedded in them. Hao Ren just kept looking at the summit that lay two kilometer ahead. With every step, his thoughts gained clarity of what he wanted to do. Hao Ren was innately a very petty human, and he was vengeful as fuck.
When the winds tried to push him back, and the cold slowed down his movement. The innately petty Hao Ren began to take deeper strides. His speed fell but his vigor increased. Tang Zen watched him from a distance and mumbled, "This brat, perhaps his vengefulness will become the trigger for his talent to surface."
After three hours, Hao Ren was covered with a shallow cloak of snowflakes. He stood at the summit, and while walking he had learned to balance himself and manipulate the strength through out his body on an optimal scale. Now he was standing at the summit with his back as straight as the spear.
Tang Zen sighed and said, "Here it comes."
The next moment, a huge roar echoed in the surroundings. The mountain shivered, and Hao Ren vigilantly looked around to spot the creature. He even used his spirit sensing ability and his Yin and Yang eyes. However, he could not find anything. Suddenly, he realized that it was the winds that created such a terrifying sound as they rubbed against the mountain.
He looked at the distant horizon and the elevation, gradually he realized how strong the mountain must have been. It stood tall as the wind rushed against it, as rain fell and snow covered it. Yet, the mountain never went out to seek revenge. Hao Ren's realized something, "Magnanimous are the ones who have strength. Be the mountain and learn to endure. Be the wind and cut through the obstacles."
As he thought more about it, he sat down on the ground with his legs crossed and began to meditate. Tang Zen looked at him and nodded. The torrential winds would help Hao Ren temper both his body and mind. This was a good thing. She waved her hand and vanished from the place.
She had taken him to the tallest mountain in the world during the peak of winter season. No human would be coming over to climb the place at this moment. Hao Ren was inhaling and exhaling very slowly. This summit was not very rich in oxygen. He was circulating the flames energy inside his body with every breath. The changes in the temperature on the outside and the inside were forging his body.
Han Lingshi was sitting in her office, and a game of chess was set up before her. She looked at her opponent, Gao Yue and the old lady said, "Within the court, there is always someone making moves against you. Treat the people as chess pieces and the kingdom as the chess board, only then can you triumph."
Han Lingshi nodded, and Gao Yue made her first move followed by Han Lingshi and the training of chess began. Gao Yue also told her that she must not overly trust anyone other than herself and Hao Ren. As the game progressed, Gao Yue explained various conspiracies through the means of the chess pieces.
One had to say, despite her old age, Gao Yue was a very cunning person. Han Lingshi was not a noob but she still could not push the old lady back. After the chess game, Yue Shi guided her daughter about the importance of public relations with the citizens and the neighboring countries.
It was not that the young lady had no clue, but she had people under her who handled these things. This time when she learned about the importance between communication, she was surprised. Xia Yulie coached Maya Okudera and Yin Ye over the skills of a minister and an assassin. They both relied on information and information was the biggest weapon so they should know how to gather it. Follow current novels on NoveI~Fire.net
Maya Okudera and Yin Ye did not expect such deep principals and the means described by Xia Yulie to exist, and they learned with great patience and enthusiasm.
Finally, Hao Xinyuan cast an illusion on Han Lingshi and asked her to chose one among the two; The power or the people.
Han Lingshi chose the people.
Hao Xinyuan asked her to chose again, but this time the options were changed. After six such questions, the final question was, Hao Ren or the throne?
Han Lingshi replied with the former. Even though she knew that the hypothetical question stated, choosing one would lead the other to death. Still she selected Hao Ren.
This did not speak volumes of their love, but the lack of the compassion and sacrifice for the masses raised a big flag. Hao Xinyuan undid the illusion and asked, "Why did you choose Hao Ren and not the masses?"
The young lady replied, "Should I answer in the capacity of his wife or the empress?"
Gao Yue raised her eyebrow and asked, "Both."
Han Lingshi replied, "As a wife, my husband is my everything and nothing holds a candle before him. As an empress, as long as my general is alive, I can enact revenge."
The two elders were surprised to hear something . They did not expect that Han Lingshi would look for such a solution.